Warning: MAJOR SPOILERS are ahead for the series premiere of Jesse L. Martin's The Irrational on NBC!
NBC is officially back in the scripted game for its fall TV schedule with the series premiere of The Irrational, which already stood out for bringing former Law & Order star Jesse L. Martin back to the network and having episodes ready to go despite the WGA writers strike. Personally, I expected the new show to be a great substitute for the Law & Order shows, but wasn't 100% convinced about the premise of a behavioral science professor helping solve crimes. Fresh off of his longtime role on The Flash, it turns out that Martin only needed about ten minutes as Professor Alec Mercer and one specific line to win me over.
The series premiere introduced Martin as Alec Mercer, a behavioral science professor whose approach to memory and decision-making helps him to resolve situations that may otherwise be at an impasse. After proving his skills by resolving a hostage situation, Alec applied his abilities to the case of Dylan, a young veteran accused of murdering his ex-girlfriend. With Dylan also the son of a senator, the stakes were high as Alec was the only person who saw a lot of holes in a very convenient confession of guilt.
By teaming up with law enforcement, he was able to crack the case and exonerate Dylan. It all could have felt like a standard procedural, even with the hints of Alec's tragic backstory and extensive burns. It was one line that the main character dropped that made me sit up and realize that The Irrational really is taking a different approach to a crime procedural. When Dylan came right out and told a pair of cops (with Alec present) that he'd killed his ex, Jesse L. Martin's character immediately intervened by saying this:
Where's his lawyer?
Even I was surprised that a three-word sentence ten minutes into the episode won me over, but the delivery helped me realized that Alec Mercer is a new kind of character for Jesse L. Martin and The Irrational isn't going to turn into Law & Order 2.0 for him. As a scripted crime drama fan, I'm used to procedurals finding reasons to keep lawyers out of interrogation rooms to keep the plot moving in a straight line, and that works for those shows.
The Irrational clearly isn't going to be one of those shows and Alec Mercer isn't just another cop trying to get a confession. I'm more optimistic than ever about a procedural starring Jesse L. Martin that isn't a repeat of what has been done before... and what he has done before, as a Law & Order veteran who makes the list of the 25 franchise actors who appeared in the most episodes as Detective Ed Green.
Throw in the clues about Alec's backstory and the church bombing that left him scarred, and it appears that there will be serialized elements to go along with the cases of the week. In fact, the ending would have won me over if I hadn't already been sold 50 minutes earlier. I'm on board to keep watching as the 2023 TV schedule continues.
Will I be so hooked that I, like Alec's sister, will be shipping him and his ex-wife? Will the format work on a weekly basis? And how will the show balance the cases of the week with the clues about the main character's past? Only time and new episodes on NBC (or streaming via Peacock Premium subscription) can answer that question, although I can say that I'm already invested enough that I hope Alec's beautiful car is fully restored by Episode 2.
If you want to keep watching, new episodes of The Irrational air on NBC on Mondays at 10 p.m. ET, following new episodes of The Voice with Reba McEntire replacing longtime coach Blake Shelton.
